By columnist Ed McMackin, biologist by profession and naturalist by nature
To give an answer to the question “Do lizards hibernate?”, while remembering that many animals hibernate in different ways, the answer is yes. In the general use of the term, “hibernate” refers to a period spent in winter dormancy. True hibernation is a time of complete inactivity. Breathing, heart rate, circulation, digestion, and movement all shut down to a bare minimum. Animals that become inactive in this way may move only slightly.
The whole purpose of “shutting down” is to enable an animal to survive a period when one or several elements of their environment is unfavourable to survival. During the winter season, a lack of food, water, and warmth are reasons to hibernate. A group of animals to which warmth is critical are members of the reptile and amphibian families, as well as some insects like hibernating butterflies.
All of these creatures are cold blooded, meaning the body temperature is similar to, and controlled by, the temperature of their environment. That is why we see butterflies flying about on sunny days when the air temperature is around 20 C. If the temperature is a little cooler than that, the cold-blooded creatures can bring their body temperature up by sunning themselves. Otherwise, when the weather becomes cool, they head for a sheltered spot and continue being inactive or dormant.
Our local Northern Alligator Lizard, along with the Western Skink with the blue tail, are true hibernators, going through the same process to survive winter and its unfavorable temperatures, lack of water and food supplies. In the fall, they prepare for dormancy by crawling into a burrow, under a rock or log, or nesting in a rotten tree.
READ MORE: Out There: Little Lizards